2000
#90,252
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 190
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.07
Very Rare Last name
Herkenhoff
A locational surname derived from places named Herkenhoff in Germany.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 230 Americans carry the last name Herkenhoff. That puts it at #96,965 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.07 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 1,490,236 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Herkenhoff surname. You will find the Census Bureau frequency data, a multi-census history view, an ancestry and ethnicity breakdown based on self-reported demographics, the name's meaning and origin where available, and answers to the most common questions people ask about this surname.
Bearers in the US
230
1 in 1,490,236
Census rank
#96,965
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.1
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
201
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 201 bearers of the surname Herkenhoff in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.07 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 96965th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Herkenhoff, the largest self-reported group is White at 95.5%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.5%) and Two or More Races (1.5%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Herkenhoff
The surname Herkenhoff has its origins in the German language, and can be traced back to the late 16th century. It is believed to have originated in the region of modern-day North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. The name is derived from the German words "herken," meaning "to originate from," and "hoff," meaning "farm" or "homestead." This suggests that the name likely referred to someone who lived on or worked at a particular farm or estate.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Herkenhoff can be found in the church records of the town of Kirchhellen, which is located in the Recklinghausen district of North Rhine-Westphalia. These records date back to the late 1500s and early 1600s, and include several entries for individuals with the surname Herkenhoff.
In the 17th and 18th centuries, the name Herkenhoff began to spread beyond the immediate region of its origin. This was likely due to migration patterns and the movement of people across Germany and neighboring areas. By the 19th century, the name had become more widely dispersed, with individuals bearing the surname Herkenhoff appearing in various towns and cities throughout Germany and beyond.
One notable individual with the surname Herkenhoff was Johann Herkenhoff, a German painter and engraver who lived in the late 17th and early 18th centuries. He was born in Cologne in 1668 and died in Mannheim in 1738. Johann Herkenhoff was known for his religious paintings and engravings, many of which adorned churches and monasteries throughout the region.
Another individual of note was Friedrich Herkenhoff, a German military officer who served in the Prussian Army during the late 18th and early 19th centuries. Born in 1771 in the town of Soest, Herkenhoff rose through the ranks of the Prussian military and played a role in several key battles during the Napoleonic Wars.
In the 19th century, the surname Herkenhoff also found its way to other parts of Europe and even to the Americas. One example is Theodor Herkenhoff, a German-American immigrant who settled in the United States in the mid-1800s. Herkenhoff was born in the town of Kamen, Germany in 1828, and later emigrated to the state of Wisconsin, where he worked as a farmer and helped establish a German-speaking community.
Another notable individual with the surname Herkenhoff was Karl Herkenhoff, a German author and journalist who lived in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Born in 1867 in the town of Lippstadt, Herkenhoff was known for his writings on political and social issues, as well as his work as a newspaper editor.
Over the centuries, the surname Herkenhoff has undergone various spelling variations, including Herckenhoff, Herkenhove, and Herkenhoeff. Additionally, there are several place names in Germany that are believed to be related to the origin of the surname, such as Herkenrath and Herkendorf.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Herkenhoff
Among Census respondents with the surname Herkenhoff, the largest self-reported group is White at 95.5%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.5%) and Two or More Races (1.5%).
The bar chart below shows how Herkenhoff bearers described their own race and ethnicity on the 2020 Census form. The Census Bureau groups responses into six broad categories: White, Black or African American, Hispanic or Latino, Asian and Pacific Islander, American Indian and Alaska Native, and Two or More Races. When a category has too few respondents for a given surname, the Bureau suppresses the figure to protect individual privacy, which is why some names show fewer than six slices.
Percentages are shown for every Census year so the breakdown stays comparable over time. When the source file also includes raw headcounts, Name Census shows those alongside the percentages in the legend.
Keep in mind that these are self-reported numbers. A person's surname does not determine their race or ethnicity, and the distribution you see here reflects the specific population who happened to carry the Herkenhoff surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White95.5% · 192
- Hispanic or Latino2.5% · 5
- Two or more races1.5% · 3
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.5% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Herkenhoff
Herkenhoff appears in 3 published Census surname files: 2000, 2010, 2020. The cards below show how the name's rank and bearer count changed across each release.
2010
#94,311
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 194
+4 bearers (+2.1%)
Per 100,000 0.07
Rank movement Down 4,059 places
2020
#96,965
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 201
+7 bearers (+3.6%)
Per 100,000 0.07
Rank movement Down 2,654 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #90,252 | 190 | 0.07 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #94,311 | 194 | 0.07 | +4 bearers (+2.1%) | Down 4,059 places |
| 2020 | #96,965 | 201 | 0.07 | +7 bearers (+3.6%) | Down 2,654 places |
For 2020, the Census Bureau published race and Hispanic-origin columns as counts rather than percentages. Name Census converts those counts back into shares so the ancestry section stays comparable with the older surname files.
Year on year
2010 vs 2020 Census
How has the Herkenhoff surname changed between Census years? The chart shows bearer count side by side, and the table compares rank, count, and frequency.
Census year comparison
20102020
| Metric | 2010 | 2020 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | #94,311 | #96,965 | -2.8% |
| Count | 194 | 201 | 3.6% |
| Per 100K | 0.07 | 0.07 | -3.9% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Herkenhoff bearers went from 194 to 201 (+3.6% change). The surname moved down 2,654 positions in the national ranking, going from #94,311 to #96,965.
FAQ
Herkenhoff surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Herkenhoff?
Name Census estimates that about 230 living Americans carry the surname Herkenhoff. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 1,490,236 residents.
How common is Herkenhoff?
Herkenhoff ranks #96,965 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.07 per 100,000 residents, which is about 0 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 201 people with the surname Herkenhoff. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (230), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.07 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.07 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 0 of them to have the surname Herkenhoff.
Has Herkenhoff become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Herkenhoff went from 194 recorded bearers to 201. That is an increase of 7 (+3.6%). In the national ranking it fell from #94,311 to #96,965.
What does the Census say about the background of Herkenhoff?
Among Census respondents with the surname Herkenhoff, the largest self-reported group is White at 95.5%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.5%) and Two or More Races (1.5%). These figures come from the 2020 Census Bureau surname tables, based on how respondents described their own race and ethnicity.
Which group reports this surname most often?
White is the largest self-reported group for the surname Herkenhoff in the 2020 Census, accounting for 95.5% (192 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Herkenhoff appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (95.5%), Hispanic (2.5%), Two or More Races (1.5%). For 2020, the source file also published raw headcounts for each group, which is why this page can show both percentages and counts in the ancestry section.
Is this page using the latest Census data?
Yes. This page is using the latest surname file currently loaded on Name Census, which is 2020. The historical section above also keeps any older Census surname entries we have for Herkenhoff (2000, 2010, 2020).
Does the Census include every surname?
No. The Census Bureau only publishes surnames that appeared at least 100 times in a given decennial Census. That means very rare surnames are excluded entirely, and a surname can appear in one Census release but disappear from a later one if it falls below the reporting threshold.
Why don't the ancestry percentages always add up to exactly 100%?
There are two main reasons: rounding and suppression. The Census Bureau rounds published values, and it may suppress very small cells to protect privacy. For 2020, the Bureau also published raw group counts rather than direct percentages, so Name Census converts those counts back into shares for comparability across census years.
What does Herkenhoff mean?
A locational surname derived from places named Herkenhoff in Germany. The fuller origin note on this page goes into more detail.
Where does the surname data come from?
All surname statistics on Name Census are drawn from the US Census Bureau's decennial surname frequency tables. These files list every surname that appeared 100 or more times in the 2020 Census, along with a count, a per-100,000 rate, and a self-reported demographic breakdown. You can read the full explanation on our methodology page.
How does Name Census estimate living bearers?
For surnames, Name Census does not age cohorts the way it does for first names. Instead, it takes the Census Bureau's published frequency for Herkenhoff (0.07 per 100,000) and applies that rate to the current U.S. resident population to estimate how many living Americans have the surname today.
How many Americans have the surname Herkenhoff?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.